Arkanthia Rulebook - Combat system

The combat system is very open and depends mainly on the initiative of the characters. As the battle progresses, the DM will incrementally count from zero to infinity. Each time the initiative of a player or a multiple of it is reached, that player can play a combat round. They can move as far as their range allows, attack, or perform other actions. Once that character’s turn is over, the count continues. Any non-player characters that join the battle must also be sorted in this order. It is important to note that player characters will always attack first if they have the same initiative. If two player characters also have the same initiative, the order will be re-rolled before each battle. An example will probably simplify the process. Let’s say the party consists of two characters, Silvio the fighter with an initiative of 5 and Lisbeth the hunter with an initiative of 3.5. The bandits they are fighting have an initiative of 4.

As soon as the fight starts, the DM starts counting. No character has reached initiative on 1, 2 or 3, but now it is Lisbeth’s turn on 3.5, and she shoots one of the three bandits in the shoulder with an arrow. He falls to the ground and is unable to move, so his next round of combat is suspended. The DM keeps counting and when he reaches 4, it’s the turn of the remaining two bandits. They must now run 5 metres towards the group before they can attack. This will completely exhaust the bandits’ range and they will not be able to perform any more actions. As the bandits are now directly in front of Silvio, he does not have to run, but can now attack at initiative 5 directly. He takes advantage of this and stabs one of the bandits with his large two-handed sword. However, the bandit successfully rolls Dodge and avoids Silvio’s powerful attack. The DM continues to count to 6, no one has a turn here, but now it’s Lisbeth’s turn at 7, as she has an Initiative of 3.5 and her Initiative doubled with the number 7. Lisbeth fires again, but misses her target. The battle continues, the order of events is listed here:

Kampfrunde	Aktive Charaktere
8	Bandits (including the one bandit who just had to sit out)
9	-
10	Silvio
10.5	Lisbeth
11	-
12	Banditen